Monthly Archives: October 2017

Deepens Legislative and Legal Affairs Expertise as Company Continues Expansion

Boston,MA (October 17, 2017) – DraftKings, the world’s largest daily fantasy sports platform, today announced R. Stanton Dodge will be its new Chief Legal Officer, effective November 6, 2017. Dodge will oversee the Legal and Government Affairs teams based in the Boston headquarters and report into DraftKings CEO and co-founder, Jason Robins.

“Stanton brings to DraftKings a wealth of experience and expertise in legal and government affairs,” said Robins. “During his nearly two decades at DISH, he helped the company grow from a startup in a fledgling industry into a telecommunications giant. Stanton will be a major driver and enabler of DraftKings’ future growth as we continue to evolve and expand into new lines of business around the world, and we are very excited to have him join the talented group of women and men who work at DraftKings.”

For the last two years, DraftKings has helped pass consumer protection laws for daily fantasy sports players in more than a dozen states across the United States. The company has also pioneered a ground-breaking legal framework to operate in the European Union by obtaining a first-of-its-kind Controlled Skill Games License from the Malta Gaming Authority, which has enabled DraftKings to successfully launch in Germany, Malta, Ireland and Austria.

Prior to DraftKings, Dodge worked at DISH Network for more than 20 years in positions of increasing responsibility in the legal department, most recently as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of DISH, responsible for all legal and government affairs for DISH and its subsidiaries and Corporate Communications.

At DISH, Dodge successfully defended the company’s wildly popular and industry disrupting technology that allowed customers to skip TV commercials.

Continuing its global market expansion, DraftKings launches its platform in new European markets

Boston, MA (October 9, 2017) – DraftKings, the world’s largest daily fantasy sports platform, today announced the continuing expansion of its operations in Europe, with the launch of its games in Ireland and Austria.

Both Ireland and Austria have strong sports’ cultures and dedicated followers of professional teams and leagues. Austrian sports fans in particular have a strong affinity for American football. Each year, the largest NFL Super Bowl party in the EU takes place in Vienna. Ireland has an engaged professional sports fan market, as well as a long history of season-long fantasy football, with golf and soccer on the rise in recent years. Additionally, MMA is an extremely popular sport in Ireland, particularly given the success of homegrown hero Conor McGregor

“Sports fans in Europe are embracing the game inside the game through DraftKings’ contests and content,” said Jason Robins, DraftKings CEO. “As we looked to expand our European footprint, it was an easy choice to launch in Ireland and Austria, given their renowned passion for sports.”

DraftKings’ European expansion is underpinned by its success in the UK and Germany. In the UK, September 2017 saw 51% year-over-year growth in entry fees and 31% year-over-year growth in new customers. In Germany, September saw 46% growth in registered customers, the largest monthly growth to-date. DraftKings intends to continue expanding its geographic footprint, both in Europe and elsewhere, in 2018.

DraftKings will deliver all 10 of the sports currently available in the U.S. to Ireland and Austria, including seven soccer leagues, NFL, MLB, NBA, CFL, NHL, Golf, NASCAR, eSports and Mixed Martial Arts.

The launch of the platform will kick off with DraftKings’ Liverpool Match Tickets promotion on October 9. Winner of the contest will be awarded tickets to the upcoming Liverpool FC vs. Manchester United FC match on October 14, 2017.

CBS Veteran Brings 20 Years of Experience in Digital Media to Focus on Growing DraftKings’ Content and New Business Revenue Streams

Boston, MA (October 4, 2017) – DraftKings, the world’s largest daily fantasy sports platform, today announced Ezra Kucharz as its new Chief Business Officer, overseeing Business Development, Corporate Development and Ad Sales. In this newly created role, Kucharz will report to CEO and co-founder, Jason Robins.

“We see tremendous growth opportunity through expansion of our sales and sponsorships business, strategic M&A, and continued development of our many great partnerships,” said Robins. Not only does Ezra bring a wealth of experience in these areas and others, he also brings an entrepreneurial approach that will mesh perfectly with the innovative culture we have built at DraftKings.”

Kucharz will focus on expanding DraftKings’ digital content through ad sales, further solidifying the company’s position at the intersection of sports, tech and media while advancing its footprint in the digital and content space. Additionally, Kucharz remit will include the build-out of the Corporate Development function identifying opportunities for strategic ventures and acquisitions.

Prior to joining DraftKings, Kucharz was president of CBS Local Digital Media and special advisor to CBS CEO Leslie Moonves. In his role at CBS Local Digital Media, Kucharz combined the digital extensions of CBS’ radio and TV assets – particularly in the areas of music, lifestyle, news, sports and local information – and allowed the company to create digital hubs in the major markets where it owned stations, resulting in the top digital business in local broadcast.